Life saving or bathing belt



y 1934- P. L. DROSNES LIFE SAVING OR BATHING BELT Filed March 24,

C. Dramas Philip fiatented July 24,

UlTD STATES PATENT GF'FME LIFE SAVING on BATHING BELT Philip Louis Drosnes, Pittsburgh, Pa, assignor to Rebecca Drosnes, Pittsburgh, Pa.

Application March 24,1933, Serial No. 662,607 g 4 Claims.

v This invention relates to a life saving or bathing belt adapted to be worn around the waist and more particularly to a belt which is fiat when not inuse and which can be inflated by air pressure when 'in use. 7 The principal objectof the invention is to provide a belt of this kind adapted to be worn around the waist and having means to inflate the outer wall thereof and without exerting any pressure on the wearer. a

Another object of the belt made of two wall members, the inner wall member being non-stretchable while the outer wall member being made of relatively thin rubher and adapted to. stretch.

A further object of the inventionis to make the belt buckle of resilient material so the belt can accommodate itself to various size waists.

A still further object of the invention is to provide a tube for inflating the belt and means to hold the tube in place.

Other objects will appear as the disclosure progresses. The drawing is intended to merely indicate a possible embodiment of the invention. It is obvious that the actual needs of manufacture may necessitate certain mechanical changes. It is therefore not intended to limit the invention to the embodiment illustrated but rather to define such limits in the appended claims.

For a more general understanding of the invention attention is called to the drawing. In the drawing like reference characters denote like parts throughout the specification.

In the drawing:

Figure 1 is a front view of the belt.

Figure 2 is a fragmentary inside view of the belt.

Figure 3 is an enlarged fragmentary top view of the belt with certain parts in cross section.

Figure 4 is an enlarged section on line 4-4 of Figure 2. n

Figure 5 is a view of one of the buckle hooks.

Figure 6 is a View of the other one of the buckle hooks. 7 a

Figure '7 is a fragmentary inside view showing I a modified formof the belt.

Figure 8 is an enlarged section on line 8-8 of Figure '7.

Figure 9 is a fragmentary top View of the belt l.Sh0Wl1 in Figure 7.

Figure 10 is an inside View of a modified form of the buckle.

Referring now to the drawing in detail, numeral 1 designates the belt made of rubber in .5itl1e formof a flat tubular member having wall invention is to have the members 2 and 3 and attached at the ends to the buckle B. Between the wall members is an air chamber 4 running the full length of the belt and adapted to hold the air for inflating the belt. The wall member 2 is non-stretchable and is v thicker than the outer wall 3., Imbedded in the interior of the wall member 2 is a strip of reinforcing material 5. The outer wall member 2 is' made of relatively thin rubber and is adapted to distend, as shown in dotted lines in Figure 3, when the chamber 4 is inflated in order to provide buoyancy when the wearer is in the water.

' Means are provided to inflate the belt which comprises a rubber tube 6 leading to the chamher 4. The tube is held in place by the series of rubber supports 7. The tube can be of any length to suit the convenience of the user. The upper lip 8 of the supports is slightly bent inwardly in order to prevent the tube from moving out of the supports. At the inlet end of the tube is a ball check valve 9 in order to hold the air pressure. When inflating the belt the check valve will leave its seat and allow the air to enter the chamber 4. However, when no inflation takes place the ball will seat itself on the seat and prevent any air from leaving the air chamber 4. An outlet valve 10 is also provided to allow the air to leave the air chamber when deflating the belt.

The buckle hooks 11 and 12 shown in Figures 5 and 6 can be of metal or of any other hard substance. The portions 13 and 14 which are embedded in the buckle B are provided with holes or openings 15 and 16. The material of the buckle fills up these openings and thus prevents the hooks from tearing out of their places.

In Figures 7 to 9 is shown a different means for holding the tube in place. Said means comprises a longitudinal pocket 17 at the top of the belt in which fits the tube 6. The top opening of the pocket is made narrower than the pocket itself so as to prevent the tube from accidentally moving out therefrom.

The modified form of the buckle 18 shown in Figure 10 is made in one piece instead of being split in the center as the buckle shown in' Figure 1 but of the same material. One end of the belt is permanently attached to the hook 19 and the opposite end is detachably fastened to the hook 20 through the medium of the link 21. On the face of the buckle can be engraved the initials of the wearer or other ornaments. V

It will thus be seen that I have provided an efficient, durable and well constructed inflatable life saving belt which can be worn around the waist of the wearer and provide sufficient buoyancy to keep .a person afloat in the water. The

belt is so arranged that the outer wall will distend outwardly only without causing any pressure against the body of the wearer. The belt is non-stretchable longitudinally but in order to take care of diiTerent size waists the buckle is adapted to stretch.

The material of the various parts can be of any nature to suit the needs of manufacture.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. In a life belt of the class described, a belt member adapted to fit around the waist of the wearer, said belt member made of two Wall members having a space between them, the outer wall of said belt member adapted to distend, a rubber inlet tube attached to the said inner wall member and leading to the space between the two wall members, means for holding said tube against the said inner Wall, said holding means lying parallel to said inner Wall member and having a longitudinal gap at the top of said holding means for allowing the said tube to be pulled out of said holding means, said gap running the full length of the holding means.

2. In a life belt of the class described, a belt member adapted to fit around the waist of the wearer, said belt member made of two wall members having a space between them, the outer wall of said belt member adapted to distend, a rubber inlet tube attached to the said inner wall member and leading to the space between the two wall members, means 'for holding said tube against the said inner wall member, said holding means comprising a set of upstanding clips, the bottom of said clips being integral with said inner wall member, said clips being open at the two ends and at one side to form lips for the removal of the tube, the lips being bent over to loosely embrace a portion of the tube.

3. In a life belt of the class described, a belt member adapted to fit around the waist of the wearer, said belt member made of two wall members having an air chamber between them, the inner one of said wall members being thicker than the outer one of said wall members, a reinforcing element embedded within the confines of said thicker wall membenthe outer wall member made of relatively thin material and adapted to distend, an inflating tube attached to the said inner wall member, and means associated with said inner wall member to hold said inflating tube, said holding means lying parallel to said inner wall and comprising a longitudinal clip on the said inner wall member, said clip being open at both ends'and at one side.

4. In a device of the class described, an inflatable belt member, an inflating tube leading to said inflatable belt member, resilient means for holding the said tube against said belt member, said means being integral with the belt member, said means having an opening at the top to allow the said tube to slip out, and a curved lip at the top of said holding means bearing loosely against said tube.

PHILIP LOUIS DROSNES. 

